Greetings from the Drop-in Center,
Thank you, First Church, for the wonderful donations that helped us feed 571 of our unhoused friends and families in April. The beautiful weather brought us lots of hungry faces, including some friends we have not seen since the beginning of the pandemic. While we always hope for housing for everyone, we are happy to see that many of our friends stayed safe and healthy throughout the pandemic.
Besides helping our friends, we also care for the homeless dogs and cats that are rescued by our homeless friends. We put together care bags of donated food, leashes (most needed) and treats. We hope you consider dogs like Spirit and Boba for any old leashes, canned or dry food and snacks. We stuffed a backpack with goodies for Boba, whose owner recently passed away, leaving Boba with his roommate.
Our friends were given free clothing from our friends Kevin and Katrina, and Nurse Ann made her monthly visit offering first aid, vitamins, and blood pressure checks.
Thank you as always to our donors and remember we are at the Drop-in Center every Saturday 10–11:30 a.m. for drop-off donations. Many of you have asked what we need most. The list is below, but keep in mind we are grateful for any donations.
Bottled water, canned goods (with flip lids) such as meats, tuna, fruits and soups.
Our Housing Specialist, Celia Guerrero, would like to share that one of our senior clients that has been in Project Room Key for several months has finally received her housing voucher. Celia has found a unit for her and she will be moving into it in the next couple of weeks. Celia continues to assist clients with housing searches and Section 8 voucher applications, recertification packages and housing inspections. Celia receives referrals from the Long Beach Multi-Service Center and Unite Us for clients in need of assistance.